I know everyone may not agree with this, but I think iOS 6 is worth ditching a jailbreak for, at least temporarily until a jailbreak surfaces. People that say you can get all of iOS 6’s features with a jailbroken version of iOS 5 are kidding themselves.

iOS 6 is an interesting piece of work, and it’s available now. The biggest story about iOS 6 is Apple’s banishing Google from nearly all facets of the OS. Nowhere is this more apparent than with the new Maps app — arguably the biggest feature of iOS 6.

Some claim that Google’s demotion within the Apple ecosystem is actually a step back for iOS, but I say otherwise. After months of usage, it’s clear that iOS users are much better off with an Apple designed Maps app. The Flyover (3D maps) option contained within iOS 6 shows promise, but without a doubt the inclusion of turn-by-turn navigation is my most used feature. Combined with Siri voice commands, it works gloriously…

It’s obvious that Apple’s Maps will need some time to mature when compared to Google Maps, as well liked features such as Street View, aren’t available in Apple’s offering. Even still, the fact that Apple has more incentive to improve upon its own Maps app bodes well for the future.

The stock YouTube app is another casualty of iOS 6. Its removal has caused an outcry by some, but the majority seem to be okay with this move. I, personally, welcome it. It’s not like the YouTube app was ever updated anyway, and Google’s own YouTube app has a good starting point.

As far as other changes go, iOS 6 is primarily a potpourri of improvements to everything introduced with iOS 5. End users aren’t greeted with any technical marvels, or groundbreaking achievements, but they are treated to a more solid operating system.

There are no huge fundamental differences in the way you use iOS 6 when compared to its predecessors. What you will find, is a more streamlined, more secure, and more stable offering. You’ll also notice that iCloud is integrated tighter in this update.

Unfortunately, one change that leaves me scratching my head is the App Store. It’s a lot prettier this time around, but it can be more difficult to find apps when doing searches, especially on the iPhone. Instead of a list of search results like previous iOS iterations, the iOS 6 App Store features “card” based search results that limit the amount of results displayed at a time.

The changes to Safari and Mail are subtle, but provide a better experience for the end user. With Mail, there are new VIP mailboxes for your most important contacts, along with per account signature ability. Safari features similar improvements like iCloud tabs, for accessing open tabs across all iCloud connected devices, offline Reading List capability, and full screen landscape mode for iPhone.

There are, of course, other features included with iOS 6 that I didn’t mention in this review, but did include in my “best features of iOS 6” video above. Be sure to check that out for a more visual breakdown of many of the new features.

Overall, I almost want to put iOS 6 in the same category as Snow Leopard — a big upgrade — but one that’s primarily underneath the hood. But it’s hard to label it just that, because there are some big features that are immediately, and visually evident within iOS 6. Therefore, iOS 6 has carved out its own little spot in iOS lore. No it’s not as big of a leap as iOS 5 from a usage standpoint, but it is more stable, has a ton of new features, and feels like it is by far the most mature iteration of iOS to date.

When it’s all said and done, I could never see myself returning to iOS 5 after using iOS 6 for months. It’s packed with so many modern conveniences, that it would be a huge regression for me to go back — yes, even if that means that I can’t jailbreak at the moment.

Update: It should be noted, that if you do want to preserve your jailbreak, that you stay away from iOS 6 until it is deemed safe. You have been warned!

Download the Waze app- its free and gives turn by turn directions using the google API. Also notifies you of cops/traffic/hazards, and reroutes you for the optimal route based on traffic updates.

Miketyler

I would have agreed with you, But and thats a big but, I am from Canada and the turn by turn maps in ios 6 will lead you to the wrong place guaranteed. I always have to pull out the old from the garmin as frustrating as that is. I wish they did work cause its great with music going etc. As for they flyover looks good but will I ever use it probably not… Until they have a JB out or apple fixes its mapping system no update for me….

Download the Waze app- its free and gives turn by turn directions using the google API. Also notifies you of cops/traffic/hazards, and reroutes you for the optimal route based on traffic updates.

Also it automatically ‘ducks’ your music while giving voice directions! 😉

f1ght3r

I like my jailbroken iPhone 4S, however I am getting annoyed of the minor nuances such as the added instability, random rebooting, and re-springs. Now you can argue that I have too many tweaks installed but to be honest I don’t use most of them, much of them are a novelty and/or customization of the springboard. I just can’t be bothered with uninstalling and re installing tweaks here and there. It used to be a huge interest of mine, but I’ve kind of gotten bored with it. Nonetheless I can certainly live without a jailbreak, but it is a catch 22 since I’ve invested a lot of money into my tweaks.

MrNiceGuy22

Agreed. Im ditching my jailbreak and will just live with a stock iPhone for now…Will be upgrading to the iPhone 5 in a month. I hate random resprings and some tweaks just slows the phone down completely.

Interesting point, and i wont argue with you on this one. But i don’t understand your point of living without jailbreak. Is io6 really that worthy of you living without a jailbroken device ?

f1ght3r

Okay so I wanted to try out apple maps so I upgraded to ios 6. I can tell you that the new additions are welcome and it does have a nice feel to it. However, passbook is completely useless to me at the moment, don’t care much for facebook integration, but the new apple maps is nice alternative to google maps. I am starting to regret updating to ios 6, even though i previously said I could live without it. I do miss my customizations and the overall feel I had with a jailbroken device. Now I am getting the iPhone 5 tomorrow so it’s not a huge deal because I would have to live without a jailbreak on that device anyways. My advice to any of you is to hold off and keep your jailbreak!

you’re an idiot. “nice try”? i’m pretty sure he made his point well. ios 6 blows and is a complete let-down. jailbreaking will forever continue to be a blowout that apple for some reason chooses not to compete with like retards. jailbroken 5.1.1 – 1,234,456,237,321! iOS 6? – 0
let’s be real, there is literally nothing special at all about this update. i urge anybody with a currently jailbroken phone to wait since this douche clearly won’t. i mean, this guy is either being paid to say this, or is just stupid.

Guest

You do realize he was pointing out that Robbie misspelled “customization” as “customisation”, and not that iOS6 has more of it, right?

Jaysonius

i was replying to that comment and annexing a rant about the let-down of ios 6. but thank you for the superfluous clarification, my good lad!

Insular

You do realise that outside of the US words are often spelt differently. ie. meter/metre, color/colour, realize/realise, right?

Agree with BigBoss.. It’s a dud. Comparing with the Mac OSX Leopard still the most inovative operating system that Apple ever built. Snow Leopard only served to cut PowerPC’s users. Lion, Mountain Lion, not worth the upgrade. Of course that iOS 6 have a lot of polishment, but 0 inovations. Will serve for US and some other countries, but here in Brazil Siri don’t work in portuguese, movies, reservations etc. Maps from Apple will be useless. From iOS3 to iOS4 truly a great mobile operating system, and from iOS4 to iOS5 a huge leap, but I’ll sit and wait until really big happen.

ic0dex

Great post Jeff, I had the same felling. I’ve been Jailbreaking ever since the first iPhone. When iOS 5 came out I felt that a jailbreak was not need because of the awesome features that came with it for the iPhone 4S. Now the same thing with iOS 6 it’s basically jailbroken for you. I mean don’t get me wrong there are awesome tweaks in Cydia but I can only name a few that I will miss:

That there is my cup of tea and I will defiantly miss a few of those tweaks. I’m 99.8% sure that I will be updating my iPhone 4S to the new iOS 6 and sacrificing my ability to Jailbreak. I mean one day I hope we should see a jailbreak for it but till then good bye Cydia you’ve done amazing things for me. It’s time to go all natural!

Looks like IOS 6 is going on the iPad 3, but I’m staying with my JB on the 4s. JB hurrrr up please!!!

MrPelz

I’ll stick with iOS 5.1.1. Hardly any tweak compatibility from start, no opportunity to use all my purchased tweaks with an untethered jailbreak, flyover for no German town (for now, afaik), Apple Maps never getting that accurate and information-filled as Google Maps, no Street View, useless Facebook-integration (actually I’m quite happy that Facebook and all the shit content is “locked” behind that sandboxed little app), no Siri-improvements for my iPhone 4 as well as no turn-by-turn or flyover. None of my friends will use Shared Photostreams though this is an interesting feature in my opinion.
I agree with most of the people – jailbreak and tweaks mean more to me than 6’s minor upgrades…

Don’t get me wrong. I will miss my favorite jailbreak apps, like iFile, ISX, etc. But I’m saying I can live without them for a while until they reappear with an iOS 6 JB. I’d even go tethered to get them back.

is it worth upgrading my iPhone 3GS to iOS 6? I mean i ran beta 4 but don’t know about the GM version. Does it make it slower?

GuyBey0ndC00L

Why the hell does Apple care so much about Quick Compose for Twitter and FB. Where the Quick Compose and Quick Reply for iMessages or Text Messages. Plus why can’t Apple find a way to let Develpors use the Nitro Java Engine for all there Apps. I’ll stick with iOS 5.1.1 Jailbroken till iOS 6 is Jailbroken.

dont show off about piracy. We all do it at some point but keep it quiet on public websites.

Jailbreaker

It wouldn’t be a huge sacrifice to ditch the jailbreak, but there are still a few things I’d like to keep. For example: ColorKeyboard, Bytafont, dreamboard, ProTube, et cetera. Not a big deal, but I’d like to keep them.

Arbrey

Lol soo I’ll loose my 5.1 jailbreak if I upgrade..?

Cedric

The new maps application is less accurate and has less details (at least in Germany). Still no native YT-App for Germans and of course no non-tethered jailbreak available for iOS 6. I don’t expect a release soon, cause I think Apple will push an 6.0.1 update in the near future (let’s say until end of the year). I bet the devteam will wait until releasing a JB.

I can’t stress how bad the maps app is on iOS 6…! I live in London and honestly it is the most disappointing feature of the update and one that is seriously making reconsider keeping my iPhone 5 after it’s delivered on Friday.

I think this jailbreak is gonna e a tough one. The a5 jialbreak and a6 jailbreak

OMG_itZ_KihdK

iOS6 doesn’t bring nothing new but security. People bases going just to look cool to there friends that they got the newest update. Even when 6 is jail broken you’ll lose 78.9% of jail broken features especially tweaks. So yeah just buy a iPhone 5 then keep the old iPhone with 5.1.1 and see which you like better. You’ll see the difference.

Now you’re talking like a super fanboy…
i like Apple products, but it never perfects, i would agree that… and for that I still stick with jailbreak…that’s for sure…
upgrading to a version which restricts customization? forget it…

I upgraded my iPad 3 to iOS6, did not have a JB on it anyway, and with the exception of the Apple Maps, I like it. Apple made a big FAIL on the Maps app. it is so inacurate that it is close to useless. It tells me there is a restaurant in a house next to me, but There are no restaurants and there has never been one. There are streets missing, the detail level is not even close to Google’s. I hope Google will release a Maps app soon. for now I will use the Web app, but it is not as good as the natvie version was.

Its funny how this review actually came from Jeff Benjamin. I mean Jeff’s the guy for reviewing tweaks and stuff.
This article leaves me scratching my head. How in the world is io6 holistic. With the amount of JailBreak tweaks/features , io6 still has a far amount of catching up to do. Yes Apple did make headway but clearly the headway was made in terms of tightening security to make it jailbreak proof and a lil bit here and there making some fancy improvements.

I’m still sticking with ios5. But then again i know most of ya’ll would agree with me 😉

Why would I even consider ditching my jailbreak???? Cydia has so many features for 5.1.1 that leaves IOS 6 standing still with the changes to maps and YouTube plus the email (who cares about VIP mailboxes) everyone do yourselves a favor and stay with 5.1.1 with Cydia you won’t need another iOS anytime soon

sunny0909

ios6 has half the stuff cydia already had and i would say better

michael jones

jeff benjamin, an editor or writer with no experience. seriously due the research before writing such biased work. iOS6 while in my opinion is really no different than iOS5, isn’t all that. Google maps, being more experienced was a poor choice by apple to ditch. They should’ve kept google as an option now that we know apples streets was flawed in many big ways. Also a jailbroken iOS5 can do the same if not better. Due the research.

riza mr

Without jail this will be my last iphone

Fuck you Apple,

And Mr. Benjamin hope you will post this message to apple

treephd

I have a 4S which is an A5, I was recently forced to upgrade which meant 6.01. I lost my jailbreak and also can’t downgrade to 5.1.1 even though I have the SHSH. The phone is very boring without the jailbreak. I don’t know how long I can hold out. I am weary of Apple’s need to control my property. they forced m to upgrade and may now force me to another manufacturer. You would think the company was being run by the government with their need for control.